TonyKornheiser

For a cable network that is far and away the leader in sports television -- so much so that they've called themselves "The Worldwide Leader in Sports" for over 30 years now -- ESPN seems to be quite the tight-assed organization.

Despite forging a reputation for opinionated sports coverage via TV, radio, and internet, they have issued an edict to their employees to not say anything critical about fellow ESPNers, under threat of suspension or other finger-wagging punishment. Bill Simmons has chafed the most under these regulations, but Tony Kornheiser isn't far behind.

There'll be a new face in the Monday Night Football booth this season. Pardon The Interruption's Tony Kornheiser is out after three years and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach – and Super Bowl winner -- Jon Gruden, is in. Gruden, who was dumped by the Bucs at the end of last season, has been sitting in on ESPN as a commentator, so this is a logical progression for him, although he does claim that he wants to be a head coach again some time in the future.

That's an interesting notion because usually when a guy gets into the booth, he doesn't get out. Dick Vermeil is one of the few to jump back and forth; John Madden, who retired from NBC less than a month ago, was one who never returned to the sidelines.

At the rate they're going, the 2008 presidential candidates will have made appearances on every kind of TV program before voting day arrives. No show is too insignificant, it seems. (Seriously, if only we could have seen Obama and McCain do the cha-cha on Dancing with the Stars!)

I've mentioned several times in this space about my love for ESPN's Pardon the Interruption, but I can always find a reason to say it again: I love this show! I mean, both Kornheiser and Wilbon rank several places higher than most of my family on my Kidney Donation short-list. I don't want to overstate the issue, but spending an afternoon eating pizza and watching PTI makes me understand how Cartman felt when he got own his own amusement park. Soooooooooo happy.

As I was describing (yet again) to my wife how much I love the show, something occurred to me regarding all the other other millions and millions talking-head shows bouncing around my digital cable box: why don't any of them employ a stat boy?

After what he did the other night, don't espect Jimmy Kimmel to pop up on ESPN's Monday Night Football again.

The show has banned the late night talk show host after his appearance two nights ago. During the Giants/Falcons game, Kimmel suddenly said "I'd also like to welcome Joe Theismann, watching from his living room at home with steam coming out of his ears." Theissman was let go from the show before this season started. MNF producer Jay Rothman called what Kimmel said "classless and disappointing."

The video after the jump has the joke about Theismann, but Kimmel also asked if it was Tony Kornheiser who got Theismann fired and joked about Kornheiser and Ron Jaworski betting on games.

The ESPN sports show host (and subject of that lame Jason Alexander sitcom from a couple of years ago, Listen Up) makes his debut tonight on Monday Night Football, a preseason game between the Raiders and the Vikings, and he's a little worried about it. As he says in a not-so-subtle way in this New York Times piece, "I'm going to bomb."

Maybe this is just a way of lowering expectations. He's not going to bomb or be terrible. I mean, Tony, it can't be any worse than Listen Up, can it?